Chapter 1: Reborn after cursing the emperor as an old dog

It was a beautiful spring day with willows green and flowers blooming. A gentle breeze carried a faint fragrance into the room, making one feel pleasantly tipsy.

Chi Yangqing had closed her eyes and was lying on the table by the window. The tree outside blocked most of the sunlight, and a few scattered spots of light danced on her face, making her fair and beautiful face even more striking.

At this moment, Liu Ye'er, the personal maid who witnessed this, felt a sense of pride. Among all the young ladies from noble families vying for attention, she felt that her own young mistress was the most beautiful of all the girls in the capital.

Not only is she good-looking, but she also has a good life. She overheard the master and mistress discussing the young lady's marriage, saying that the third prince had hinted at it.

The Third Prince was recently named Crown Prince, so if the young lady marries him, won't she become the Crown Princess? And eventually, she'll be the Empress!

As the personal maid who grew up with her mistress, she too was about to be promoted.

The master is the Crown Prince's teacher. Today, the Third Prince is visiting our home. Although there is a difference between men and women, the young lady and the Crown Prince are only one year apart. They have seen each other countless times since they were children and can be considered childhood sweethearts.

It just so happens that the young lady had a fever the day before yesterday, and the Crown Prince took the initiative to ask about it. The Lady also wanted to help arrange a good marriage, so she sent someone to invite the young lady to come and meet him.

Liu Ye'er gently called "Miss" twice, but perhaps because Chi Yangqing was sleeping too soundly, she showed no signs of waking up.

Liu Ye'er was so anxious that she could only gently push Chi Yangqing, who then slowly woke up. Her eyes were still misty, and she was clearly not fully awake. She blurted out, "Oh, Liu Ye'er, what are you doing here?"

Liu Ye couldn't help but laugh. Seeing that her hair was disheveled, she helped her sit down at the dressing table while teasing her with a smile, "Is Miss still half asleep? Why are you making such a fuss when you see me? Where else can I go if I don't stay by your side?"

She picked up the comb. "Miss, you'd better cheer up quickly, His Highness the Crown Prince is waiting to see you in the outer hall."

Chi Yangqing was stunned again. The Crown Prince? What Crown Prince?

Shouldn't the crown prince still need to be held by his mother?

Could it be that I slept for several years?

She was sitting opposite Liu Ye'er, and looking at her bright, smiling eyes, she thought that Liu Ye'er must be living a good life after leaving the palace and getting married, which is why she looks younger and younger.

Unlike Li Shangxuan, that bastard, who treated her badly at all.

But that bastard is already dead. Thinking of this, Chi Yangqing's eyes couldn't help but well up with tears again.

Liu Ye'er obviously saw it too, but didn't think much of it, assuming she was just sleepy. "Why are you so sleepy?"

Chi Yangqing reached out to wipe away her tears. Luckily, Liu Ye'er misunderstood, otherwise she would have been too embarrassed to even wipe her tears.

She wouldn't cry for that heartless bastard.

Because of the movement, her peripheral vision caught a glimpse of the bronze mirror on the side, and Chi Yangqing's eyes widened in shock at just one glance.

Ignoring the fact that Liu Ye'er's comb was still in her hair, she couldn't wait to get close to the polished bronze mirror, where she met the eyes of a pair of almond-shaped eyes reflected in the mirror.

She rubbed her eyes, and the person in the mirror rubbed their eyes too.

She touched her own face, and the person in the mirror also touched their own face.

Liu Ye'er was completely baffled: "What's wrong, Miss?"

He wondered to himself, "Could it be that my fever hasn't gotten better yet?"

Hearing her words, Chi Yangqing turned around and asked, "What year of peace is this?"

Liu Ye'er looked puzzled. "How many years has Taiping been in? Miss, are you still not awake? It's the 25th year of Anle now. None of the previous emperors of the Great Xia Dynasty used the reign title Taiping."

Chi Yangqing calculated in her mind that it was the 25th year of Anle, and Li Shangxuan ascended the throne in the 28th year of Anle, changing the country's name to Taiping. She married Li Shangxuan in the first year of his reign, which means that she is only seventeen years old now, and Li Shangxuan has just become the crown prince this year.

That means everything has to start all over again? This time, she doesn't want to marry him.

There are so many young masters and noblemen in the capital, why should she hang herself on just one tree?

She stared intently at herself in the mirror, her face, young and radiant at seventeen, completely different from the one she had seen in the bronze mirror not long ago, dressed in white and with tears streaming down her face; it was full of vitality.

As expected, Li Shangxuan misled her!

Those past events are vividly etched in her mind. For some unknown reason, she has been given a second chance. This time, she is determined not to repeat the same mistakes. The emperor in the palace is a tiger; let whoever wants to marry him, marry him. She, for one, is not going to marry again.

Once she connected the dots, she understood who the "Crown Prince" Liu Ye'er had mentioned earlier was.

This man still maintains a virtuous and upright appearance, showing none of the ruthless and cunning demeanor he would later display. Countless ministers who supported his ascension to the throne later regretted it deeply.

Now, he's using this face to seduce me!

How could a seventeen-year-old resist him? It would be strange if she didn't fall for his charms.

Chi Yangqing rubbed her forehead, her delicate brows furrowed, and her voice, which had been so strong just moments before, was now weak. "Liu Ye'er, I think I really still have a fever, and my head suddenly hurts again."

Liu Ye'er became anxious: "Does it hurt badly? I'll go and fetch a doctor right now."

The young lady is so feverish that she doesn't even know what day it is; she must be very ill.

Seeing that Liu Ye'er had already taken a step and seemed to be waiting for her to give the order to run out, Chi Yangqing quickly reached out and grabbed her arm, saying, "It's not that serious. Just make me another bowl of medicine according to yesterday's prescription."

She coughed lightly before getting to the point, "The Crown Prince is of noble birth, so I don't need to go see him. Otherwise, it would be terrible to pass on my illness to him."

Liu Ye'er's eyes lit up, thinking that her young mistress was very thoughtful. "Very well, I will go and tell Sister Qingzhu that it is not appropriate for the young mistress to receive guests, and then have Xiao Tao prepare the medicine."

Chi Yangqing, having achieved her goal, instructed, "Go."

After Liu Ye'er ran out, a maid came to bring fresh tea. Chi Yangqing looked at her closely, but this was almost ten years ago for her. The maid in front of her was probably not her personal servant, and Chi Yangqing couldn't remember her name.

She wanted to ask, but she was afraid of giving herself away. She thought that few people would believe her if she said she had come back from ten years in the future.

Chi Yangqing was still afraid; they treated her like a demon or monster, tied her up, and interrogated her.

The more she said, the more mistakes she made, so she didn't say anything more.

The weather in the capital city changes every day in spring. Today it is already quite warm, but Liu Ye'er is afraid that the wind will be too cold, so she has already closed the window. She lies in her original spot, pretending to rest with her eyes closed, but her mind is in turmoil.

Chi Yangqing didn't think she had any special talents, so why did she suddenly get the favor of heaven and come back to life?

In fact, she didn't have anything that required divine favor. Even if she didn't come back, Li Shangxuan had probably arranged everything. She just needed to be a dutiful empress dowager.

But she was still unhappy.

Although Li Shangxuan often bullied her after they got married, even though the two had no children for many years, he never intended to expand his harem despite all the objections. So why did he personally lead an expedition and not only bring back a baby who was still in swaddling clothes and could only cry? He also lost his life.

After Li Shangxuan returned from the north, the first thing he did was to bestow the title of Zhaoyi upon the child's mother. He then instructed Chi Yangqing to teach the child well, to treat him as her own, and to be a good Empress Dowager in the future.

Chi Yangqing had never suffered such humiliation before, and immediately turned away, not noticing his unusually pale face.

"You wish! You brought back some wild woman and bastard child from who-knows-where, and you expect me to raise them for you? No way!"

Willow leaves, which had left but returned, came rushing over, interrupting my thoughts.

Chi Yangqing's face turned quite pale as she recalled her past life, which made Liu Ye'er feel even more sorry for her. "Why is my young lady so unlucky? She's been sick for so long because of a spring cold."

Although the window was closed, a breeze still seeped in. Liu Ye'er hurriedly said, "Miss, you should go to bed and rest. Be careful not to catch a cold and worsen your condition."

Chi Yangqing smiled and said, "I didn't want to sleep. I was just feeling weak and lying down thinking."

Liu Ye'er said, "Alright, alright, Xiao Tao is already decocting the medicine, she'll be better soon. What would you like to eat for dinner, Miss? I'll have someone prepare it in advance. Because of this illness, I haven't been able to eat properly for several days. I had just started to recover these past two days, but it suddenly relapsed."

Chi Yangqing comforted her, saying, "I actually have a good appetite today. I haven't had the Five-Flavor Wonton from that place in the East Market in a long time."

Liu Ye'er was slightly taken aback. "Miss, you must be joking. Didn't we just eat the Five-Flavor Wonton yesterday?"

Chi Yangqing was also stunned. How could she possibly remember what she ate on a certain day ten years ago? She stammered, "I ate it yesterday. Can't I eat it again today?"

Liu Ye sighed, looking at Chi Yangqing with even more pity, thinking that her mistress was really delirious with fever. "Of course, this servant will send someone to buy it right away."

Chi Yangqing was finally satisfied and stopped talking, not daring to say anything more, for fear of accidentally saying something wrong again.

However, she still vividly remembers these five kinds of wontons; she used to frequent them even before she got married.

After she got married, the proprietress went back to her hometown to enjoy her grandchildren, and she never tasted such delicious wontons again.

Even the most exquisite dishes prepared by the imperial chefs in the palace cannot compare to the taste in my memory.

Since they've actually come back today, I naturally have to satisfy my appetite.

But before Xiao Tao's medicine could be brought over, and before the five kinds of wontons could be bought, Liu Ye'er came over again, beaming with joy, "Miss, His Highness the Crown Prince wants to come and see you."

You old dog, you're about to die and you're still giving me orders? What do your sons have to do with me? I'm leaving the palace to live the life of an immortal. I'll find you a few good younger brothers so you can enjoy the company of concubines even down there.

Then Li Shangxuan breathed his last.

She only realized she was panicking then, but it was too late.

They had been husband and wife for many years. Before they got married, she wasn't afraid of him much. But after they got married, he became a high and mighty king, and she was a queen with a prestigious position, but she was still inferior to him.

He also became increasingly eccentric, and his domineering style in the court had spread throughout the entire Great Xia Dynasty. All the civil and military officials were trembling with fear, let alone a mere woman like her.

Chi Yangqing had no idea where she got the courage to speak so arrogantly to him.

Li Shangxuan, who had been scolded, was dead, but not completely dead. The young man specifically asked to see her by name. How could this not make Chi Yangqing panic?

She said in a panic, "Are you crazy? I'm sick, and this is my private room. How could he come in?"

Liu Ye'er still had a smile on her face: "His Highness the Crown Prince didn't want to come in. He said he wanted to say a few words to you through the window."

A note from the author:

The child is not the male lead's.

I'm posting a pre-order for "Inviting a Male Fox Spirit to Die".

Cold-faced, sarcastic female lead / Tsundere male vixen

In the middle of nowhere, at a secluded mountain guesthouse, a group of young men and women laughed and suggested playing a game of Ouija board.

It looks like the beginning of a horror movie.

Lin Hezi couldn't control others, so she could only refuse to participate and return to her room alone.

When she opened her eyes again, everyone else, including her older sister, had vanished without a trace, leaving her alone in the three-story building.

No, what have I really done to deserve this?

She wanted to run away, but the door was locked from the inside and she didn't have the key. She wanted to go back to sleep, but she couldn't fall asleep. Then she heard a knocking sound at the window. A handsome man stood in the moonlight, smiling and saying that he could take her to find her missing sister.

******

When Bai Jiao saw the unlucky guy again, his good friend, the dog Da Huang, urged him to quickly deliver an umbrella.

Even though the sun was shining brightly, he thought the dog had gone mad.

Da Huang said shyly, "Don't you think this is especially like the beginning of the Legend of the White Snake? There is love in the world, I am Bai Suzhen and you are Xiaoqing."

Bai Jiao was speechless. Even if it really was the Legend of the White Snake, wasn't it obvious who was more suitable for Bai Suzhen?